Focusing-hood for cameras.



I PATBNTED AUG. 11,1903. I; B.'LA MAY & w, 0. WHITLOGK.

FOGUSING HOOD FOR CAMERAS;

' APPLICATION FILED SEPT. 2. 1902.

10 MODEL.

Ire. 736,271.

UNITED STATES Patented August 11, 1903.

PATENT FFICE.

FRANK B. LA MAY AND IVILLIAM C. WVHITLOCK, OF ROCHESTER, NEW YORK, ASSIGNORS TO SENECA CAMERA COMPANY, OF ROCHESTER,

NEW YORK.

FOCUSlNG-HOOD FOR CAMERAS.

:SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent N0. 736,271, dated August 1 1, 1903.

Application filed September 2, 1902, Serial 110.121.8558. (No model.)

To aZZ whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, FRANK B. LA MAY and WILLIAM G. WHIrLooK,citizens of the United States, residing at Rochester, in the county of Monroe and State of New York, have in vented a new and Improved Focusing-Hood for Cameras, of which the following is a specification.

The object of our invention is to provide a new focusing-hood for cameras which Will exclude as much as possible of the light from the ground-glass or focusing plate when used in the ordinary process of focusing the camera.

Our invention consists in the-arrangement of parts shown in the accompanying drawings, which are as follows:

Figure 1 is a perspective view of our focusing-hood opened out. Fig. 2 is a perspective View of the hood closed. Figs. 3, at, 5, and 6 are sectional views taken in the plane indicated by the dotted line 00 1 a of Fig. 1 with all the parts at the left of such plane removed. Fig. 3 shows the parts in the opened position. Fig. 4 shows the lower door 1) partially raised. Fig. 5 shows the lower door I) closed. Fig. 6 shows the entire focusing-hood closed, while Fig. '7 is a rear View of the parts when in the position indicated in Fig. 4.

Referring to the drawings, A represents the back frame of a camera having an opening therein and with the aluminium door a hinged to the upper side thereof and arranged when closed to completely cover the opening, as indicated at a in Fig. 2, in which position it may be held by means of any suitable button or catch, as e. (Seen in Figs. 2 and 6.) A similar door I) is similarly hinged to the lower side of the opening of the back frame A of the camera and arranged to fold up within or in front of the door a. These doors a and b are connected at their sides by leather curtains d and at, so creased, as indicated at the diagonal lines i, i, and i therein, that when the lower door I) is entirely closed the side curtains d and d will assume the position indicated in Fig. 5, in which figure only the curtain at, being the one farthest from the observer, is shown. During the closing of this lower door I) the curtain c, in which are two sight-openings c o, as seen in Fig. 1, will be caused first to assume the position indicated in Figs. 4 and 7, and then as the lower door I) is entirely closed this curtain 0 will be held in a horizontal position just beneath the upper door a, as indicated in Fig. 5. During the closing of the lower door I) also the curtains cl and d are folded up diagonally along the crease or fold i, bringing the creases or folds t immediately inside of and coincident with the creases or folds t. Then upon closing down the upper door a the side curtains d and d bend or fold inwardly along the creases or folds i and "i in a triangular shape in between the upper door a and the lower door I).

The upper and lower doors a and b have barrels or cars formed thereon inelosing the pintles or rods 77., upon which springs s are arranged, operating normally to force the doors a and I) open and cause them to occupy horizontal positions, as indicated in Figs. 1 and 3. The spring 3 for the lower door I) is not shown.

In using our focusing-hood the button or catch e is turned so as to release the upper door a, and the spring 3 immediately forces the same to the horizontal position, and immediately thereafter the similar spring 5, operating upon the lower door 1'), forces it outward and causes it to assume a horizontal position, at which time the side curtains d and cl and the back curtains 0, taken with the upper and lower doors a and 1?, respectively, when caused to assume the position seen in Fig. 1 constitute the five sides of a box, practically excluding the light from the back side of the focusing-plate.

The operator adjusts the focus of the camera while looking through the sight-openings c 0 provided for that purpose in the rear curtain a.

Our invention then consists, essentially, it will be understood, in the use of four lightexcluding planes arranged when in their operative positions to form a tube, so as to exclude the light from the focusing-plate. There may or may not be added a fifth plane provided with sight-openings therein.

What we claim is- 1. In a focusing-hood for a'camera and in combination with the back-frame thereof having an opening therein, five cooperating planes of light-excluding material flexibly connected together and to such back-frame to constitute, When in their operative positions, the five sides of a box extending to the rear from and opening in front into the camera and arranged also to be folded up in a series of practically parallel planes and practically within the opening to such back-frame of such camera, the plane constituting the rear end of such box provided with sightopenings, one of such planes of light-excluding material constituting a practically rigid doorentirelyclosingsuch openingin thebackframe of the camera.

2. In a focusing-hood for a camera and in combination with the back frame thereof having an opening therein, four cooperating planes of light-excluding material flexibly connected to such back-frame, to constitute, when in their operative positions, the four sides of a tube extending to the rear from and openingin frontinto the camera and arranged also to be folded up in a series of practically parallel planes and practically within the opening to such back-frame of such camera, one of such planes of light-excluding material constituting a practically rigid door entirely closing such opening in the back-frame of the camera.

3. In a focusing-hood for a camera and in combination with the back frame thereof having an opening therein, four cooperating planes of light-excluding material flexibly connected together to constitute, when in their operative positions, the four sides of a tube extending to the rear from and opening in front into the camera and arranged also to be folded up in a series of practically parallel planes and practically within the opening to such back-frame of such camera, one of such planes of light-excluding material constituting a practically rigid door entirely closing such opening in the back-frame of the camera.

4:. In a focusing-hood for a camera and in combination with the back frame thereof having an opening therein, five cooperating planes of light-excluding material flexibly connected together and to such back-frame to constitute, when in their operative positions, the five sides of a box extending to the rear from and opening in front into the camera and arranged also to be folded up in a series of practically parallel planes and practically within the opening to such back-frame of such camera, the plane constituting the rear end of such box provided with sightopenings, that plane of light-excluding material constituting the top of such box constituting also a practically rigid door entirely closing such opening in the back-frame of the camera.

5. In a focusing-hood for a camera and in combination with the back-frame thereof having an opening therein, four cooperating planes of light-excluding material flexibly connected to such back-frame to constitute, when in their operative positions, four sides of a tube extending to the rear from and opening in front into the camera and arranged also to be folded up in a series of practically parallel planes and practically Within the opening to such back-frame of such camera, that plane of light-excluding material constituting also the top of such tube constituting a practically rigid door entirely closing such opening in the back-frame of the camera.

6. In a focusing-hood for a camera and in combination with the back frame thereof having an opening therein, four cooperating planes of light-excluding material flexibly connected together to constitute, when in their operative positions, four sides of a tube extending to the rear from and opening in front into the camera and arranged also to be folded up in a series of practically parallel planes and practically Within the opening to such back-frame of such camera, that plane of light-excluding material constituting the top of such tube constituting also a practically rigid door entirely closing such opening in the back-frame of the camera.

FRANK B. LA MAY. WM. 0. WHITLOCK.

Witnesses:

ALBERT O. BELL, ETHA M. SMITH. 

